On Anniversaries and Milestones and Lessons Learned Along the Way

Today is the sixth anniversary of the first time I ever wrote THE END. I finished my first book, Treading Water, on May 18, 2005 with great fanfare and celebration. My family took me out to dinner, there were flowers from the hubby and excitement from my dad, who'd been after me to "write that book" for years at that point. Sadly, my mother, who had died nearly two years earlier, wasn't there to join in the fun, but I believed then—and I continue to believe today—that she's had a hand in all the wonderful things that have happened in the last six years. After all, she was the one who put a book in my hand every night before bed and said, "Read." And I read and read and read some more. Reading has always been my no. 1 hobby. Over 10 years as a Navy wife, my favorite books got moved more times than I could count, but parting with them was never an option. Nineteen years of marriage later, I still have them. One of my prized possessions is a first-edition copy of Love Story, which is one of those books you wish you could read again for the first time.

Since I loved to read and writing was the only thing I've ever been any good at, I suppose writing fiction was my destiny. Last week, I finished my 18th novel, and I'm happy to report it's still fun, although no. 18 was greeted with considerably less fanfare than no. 1 received. I believe it went something like this: "Congrats, Mom. That's awesome. What's for dinner?" :-)

I thought it would be fun today to recount a few of the lessons I've learned in the last six years.

Lesson No. 1: Nothing Ever Goes as Planned
When I finished Treading Water (still, in my humble opinion, the best book I've ever written), I was surprised to discover the romance fiction world had been invaded by vampires. They were everywhere in 2005-2006. Contemporary romance was a dying genre, and few agents or editors were taking on new contemporary authors. When I realized there was literally no market for my lovely book, I did what I was told not to do: I wrote two sequels. Those three books are still my favorites, and they are the ones my core group of readers still talk about all these years later. After six years and five published books (with three more coming soon), guess what? Treading Water is out on submission to publishers. Contemporary is making a big comeback. I've had a bit of success with my earlier books, and my ebooks have really taken off. The time is right for my most-loved book to have its moment. Whether or not it will sell is anyone's guess, but I remain optimistic. I have no doubt that my readers would go crazy over those three books, so keep your fingers crossed that an editor will, too. Getting back to the nothing goes as planned heading: I kept writing, and my seventh book became my debut, Line of Scrimmage. Go figure! (If you haven't read the story behind Treading Water and The House That Jack Built, check it out.)

Lesson No. 2: Writing May Be a Solitary Endeavor, But It Doesn't Have to be Lonely
I have made some of the best friends of my life within in the romance community (writers and readers), and they've made this perilous journey so much more fun and bearable than it would've been otherwise. I won't name names here, but you know who you are, and you know what you've done to prop me up, so I will just say thank you.

Lesson No. 3: The Publishing Business is a Marathon Not a Sprint
People ask me all the time what the secret is to getting published—and staying published. I give the same answer every time: you have to want it with every fiber of your being. Just like people who run marathons or climb mountains, an inner drive fuels writers to keep showing up every day, to keep putting butt in seat and fingers on keyboard when it would be so much easier to just say ENOUGH already. You can't ever give up. Years ago, when nothing was going the way I'd thought it would (see Lesson No. 1), I kept telling myself the only thing I knew for SURE was if I gave up it would never happen. It's as true today as it was six years ago.

Lesson No. 4: Don't be Afraid to Take Chances
I wanted to write this series, you see, featuring a DC cop and a U.S. Senator in every book. I wanted it to be a romance series with mystery and politics and an enduring love affair between two complex characters. I was told it couldn't be done. I was told that romance demands a new couple in the second and subsequent books. I was told to write it to formula. I didn't do what I was told, and my Fatal Series is the result. I could've given in and done it the way "they" wanted it done, but I wouldn't love writing that series quite as much if I hadn't done it my way. I was also told you shouldn't write the second book in a series before the first one sells. Twice now I have benefitted GREATLY from not listening to that advice. Write whatever is calling to you, and don't listen to people who tell you "it's just not done." Maybe it just hasn't been done YET. For five and a half of my first six years in publishing, self-publishing was a taboo. And then, seemingly overnight, it wasn't. I gave it a whirl, and it's been the BEST thing to ever happen to my career. Take chances. Sure, you might fail, but wow, if you succeed, it's so much sweeter because you took a risk. Those other books I wrote along the way? I worked on them constantly for years. Any time I learned something new or identified a bad habit, I went back and applied it to my earlier books. One of my favorite quotes is luck is the convergence of preparation and opportunity. When this new opportunity arose to deliver my books to readers, I was READY, and the response to those books has made me feel VERY lucky indeed.

Lesson No. 5: Trust Your Gut
If you sense that someone is feeding you a line of bull, they probably are. If a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is. If a relationship you've worked years to attain with an agent, an editor, a critique partner or anyone else affiliated with the business isn't working, don't be afraid to speak up. You are your own best advocate, and it's true what they say that no one will ever love your book as much as you do. A writer friend of mine told me the other day that she loves how much I love my books. Well, hell yes, I love them. If I didn't love them you'd certainly never get to read them. I love all 18 of them. Some more than others for sure. I didn't always love the process of creating them, but I love the end result or they'd be under the bed where no one could ever see them. None of my books are under the bed, and I hope you'll get a chance to read them all someday.

Lesson No. 6: Listen to and Respect Your Readers
One of the things I've come to realize is that in the publishing pecking order, readers tend to fall pretty far down on the list. In MY world, they are no. 1. Everything I do is for my readers. Every ounce of work I put into a book is for one reason: because I will be asking my hard-earned readers to part with their hard-earned money, and I want them to come away entertained and moved in some way or another. Sometimes they leave happy. Other times they are mad with me (I love that just as much) and sometimes they've fallen a little bit in love with one of my characters (Nick Cappuano anyone?) If readers finish one of my books thinking and feeling SOMETHING, ANYTHING, then I've done my job. I have kept all of the emails I've received from satisfied readers, and I treasure every one of them. I know what my readers want from me because I talk to them often, via email, Facebook and Twitter, and I am listening.

Lesson No. 7: Protect the Work
Writing and storytelling are the most important parts of my "job." They come first and foremost, ahead of promotion, attending conferences, networking with other writers and fooling around online. Without words on the page, there's nothing to promote or sell or read. Protecting the work sometimes means living like a hobbit, saying no to social events that sound fun and forgoing the glass of wine that would make me so sleepy nothing else gets done that day. Protect the work. It's everything. But it's also important to know when it's just not happening on a given day and not trying to force it. That, too, protects the work.

Lesson No. 8: Keep Your Priorities Straight
I've had a great run as a writer. I've been blessed beyond my wildest dreams with so many wonderful moments along the way. But writing is not my full-time job. I have one of those, and it gets all my attention every day before I write a word because it, too, has been one of the great blessings in my life. And before either of my two "jobs" come my two children, who are the most important people in my life. They are tied for No. 1 (and no, I do not have a favorite, contrary to what they might say), and they always come first. All I really care about is seeing them to successful adulthood (and hopefully getting a few grandchildren if they are feeling kind toward their mother). Anything else that might come my way via my books is frosting on an already very nice cake. My husband and kids have been my top supporters, my greatest champions and biggest fans. They come first. Period.

Lesson No. 9: I'm Doing Exactly What I Was Meant to Do
To everyone who has read my books, to friends and family who have encouraged and supported me over the last six years, to the first editor who said yes, to the publisher who took a chance on an unconventional romance series to the wonderful agent who has stuck with me through thick and thin, thank you. Because of you—all of you—I'm doing exactly what I was meant to do, and I'm loving every minute of it.

My Core Story

Since last year's RWA Conference, I've been thinking a lot about something Jayne Ann Krentz said in her luncheon speech. It was about knowing your core story as a writer, and remaining true to it in all your books because it's what readers come to expect from you. So I started to think: What is my core story? I'm not sure I have just one. I've given this a lot of thought, mind you, and these are the core stories I've come up with that resonate through most of my contemporaries (I am excluding the Fatal books because they are an entirely different animal altogether!):

1. I'm told I do love triangles pretty well. I enjoy writing them and examining all the various implications for all three parties.
2. For some strange reason, I like to write about fame in all its many iterations and what it does to regular people.
3. I often work in the "gray area" between the black and white of right and wrong. I like what goes on there, the murkiness and the uncertainty.
4. I like to write about families and family dynamics.

You will find some or all of these themes in all of my books. Line of Scrimmage and Love at First Flight featured love triangles. Everyone Loves a Hero looks at what fame can do to a regular guy and his relationships with regular people. Recently I decided to post two of my unsold books because readers were asking for more, and I have plenty more to give! True North touches on issues related to fame and how it can impact one's desire to lead a "normal" life. In a way, it contains a love triangle because Liana has to choose between the man she has come to love and the high-profile career she thought she wanted. The Fall is all about that grey area, what goes on in the murky place between right and wrong. It was fun to take a doctor who thought he knew himself so well and show him he knew nothing at all. It also contains one hell of a love triangle and is fat with family dynamics! Here's some more about True North and The Fall:

True North
The first time Travis North lays eyes on Liana McDermott, she’s wearing the most hideous bridesmaid dress he’s ever seen. He doesn't immediately recognize the world-famous model who is attending her cousin Enid's wedding at the country club he owns. Thanks to Enid's shameless matchmaking, Travis and Liana become acquainted and later embark on a two-week fling intended to be free of emotion and entanglement. As Liana's return to work gets closer, however, Travis wonders how he'll ever let her go when the time comes while Liana considers whether he might be her true north. Two high-powered careers, two amazing weeks and a love that comes along just once in a lifetime. Is she ready to give up her career for a different kind of life? Does he want the same things she does? After insisting on an emotionless affair, she can't very well ask him. Or can she?

Find True North here. Thank you to everyone who has bought True North this month. I'm truly blown away by the reception it has received.

The Fall
Dr. Ted Duffy has finally met a woman who makes him ache with desire. Too bad she’s dating his best friend of twenty years. This simple premise has momentous consequences for Ted in “The Fall,” a story that explores the bonds of friendship, the expectations of family, and the power of love to unite and divide. Ted is a third-generation pediatric oncologist in Boston. He is thirty-seven years old, married to his work, and his patients are his kids. He and his college friends spend summer weekends in Newport, Rhode Island, which is the only break Ted gets from the grind of his job. After a devastating loss at work, he leaves for Newport where he meets his friend’s new girlfriend, Caroline. During that first weekend together, Ted and Caroline fall in love. When they later act on their feelings, shock and disbelief ricochet through his tight-knit group of friends and family. A highly respected doctor, a beloved son and grandson, a loyal friend, Ted is stunned by his sudden free fall from grace. Sometimes love is not enough...or is it?

Find The Fall here.

Hope you enjoy these new offerings and I'm curious to know what you all think about core story. Do your favorite writers tend to stick to certain themes? Are you always looking for those themes in their books? Are you disappointed when you don't find them?

Love this Picture

I love this picture of my new best reader friend in Uruguay, Lady Vale, with the two books I sent her for showing me the love on Goodreads! Isn't she so cute?

Lucky Number 18

The number 18 has been very good to me. I've written about this before, but I have a recent addition to my growing list of cool things that have happened on the 18th:

July 18: My daughter's birthday (1995)

October 18: My son's birthday (1998)

May 18: The day I finished my first book (2005)

June 18: The day I signed with my current agent (2007)

February 18: The day I sold Fatal Affair to Carina Press (2010)

My friend Ilana tells me that 18 is a lucky number in Hebrew. This from Wikipedia: The Hebrew word for "alive" is חי (chai), which has a numerical value of 18. Consequently, the custom has arisen in Jewish circles to give donations and monetary gifts in multiples of 18 as an expression of blessing for long life.

I've begun to look forward to the 18th of the month. You just never know what might happen! When I gave Ryan Sanderson the uniform number 18 in Line of Scrimmage, my son Jake, a rabid Patriots' fan, was very concerned that people might think I am a Peyton Manning fan. When I told him I was going to write about lucky 18 on my blog, he asked me to set the record straight once and for all. Ryan was number 18 because both of my kids were born on the 18th, NOT because of Peyton Manning. We live in Tom Brady country. So hopefully this will satisfy Jake's concerns. :-)

Airplane Love, It's Not Just Fiction

First off, a huge thank you to everyone who came out this week to welcome my friends Sharon and Cheryl to the blog. Congratulations to Razlover and Mary G who won copies of Cheryl's books Slave and Fugitive. We hope you'll check back and let us know how you liked them! That imagination of Cheryl's... whooo!

One of the things we authors do to gain insight into what's being said about our books is to set up Google alerts with our names and the names of the books. No surprise that Line of Scrimmage leads me to a lot of football sites, especially during the season. Love at First Flight, however, has taken me to some interesting stuff, such as the effort by a New Zealand airline to book romance excursions. Most recently was this story on CNN about a couple on the US Air flight that splashed into the Hudson a year ago yesterday who have since fallen in love. Read the story here.

The thing I love best about this story is her fear of birds and his fear of drowning and how they converged on that fateful day. It's a story made for Hollywood and seems destined to have a happy ending. Isn't that what we love best in romance land?

Have you ever seen someone on a flight and wondered what if?

Another Crazy Week/RWA Photos

I keep waiting for things to slow down, but the relentless pace continues! I've been meaning all week to write and say a huge THANK YOU to all the friends who made my first blog book club meeting such a success. It was so great to have the chance to talk to you about the book (as well as potential future books) and to hear what you thought about various controversial decisions I made for Michael, Juliana, and their cast of supporting players. Readers are key to everything we do as writers, so let me say thank you again so much for your support of me and my books!! Congratulations to Pat L. who won the Love at First Flight Grand Prize Gift Basket and to all who answered the daily questions about the book on my website.

While I'm talking about readers and how much I love and adore you all, I wrote this for a blog stop at Love is an Exploding Cigar this week, but I wanted to re-run part of it here in case any of you missed it:

This last month has been an exciting whirlwind as my second book, Love at First Flight, hit the shelves. I’ve been on a “blog tour” and been part of four different book signings. I had a party for my friends and family, who are such wonderful supporters and deserve their own signing!

Then I went to RWA and experienced a major “first” in my writing career—connecting with readers who’ve enjoyed one or both of my books. Both books have been published since last year’s conference, so this was my first one as a truly published author. At the literacy signing, three women rushed up to my table just after the doors opened because they wanted me to sign copies of Line of Scrimmage. They gushed about how much they’d loved it, and by the time they were done, they had me in tears. I kept looking over my shoulder, for surely they had to be talking to one of the other authors in the huge room!? I said to them, “You ladies do know that Nora is in this room, right?” They laughed and said they’d come to see me. Overwhelming.

Another woman came up to me at the dessert reception after the RITAs to tell me she’d picked up Line of Scrimmage at the Sourcebooks signing earlier in the day and had spent hours in her room reading, skipping the sessions she’d planned to attend. Thanks for your kind words, Michele from Texas! I'm so glad you enjoyed Line of Scrimmage! Again, however, as we were talking, I wanted to glance over both shoulders to find the author she had to be talking about behind me. You mean me? There simply are no words to describe that moment of connection with a reader who truly gets what you were trying to do with a story.

This past Monday evening, I hosted a book club party on my blog where I posted questions about my new book, Love at First Flight, and encouraged readers to sound off about some of the romance rules I broke in the story. Eight minutes after the start time, no one had shown up. I was beginning to sweat. Oh well, I thought, it was worth a shot. And then they came and came and came . . . I typed like a mad woman for over an hour while my husband sat next to me on the sofa cracking up at all my muttering and sputtering. I said at the beginning I would’ve been happy with fifty comments (including my own) but ended up with nearly one hundred. This ability to interact with readers, whether in person at conferences such as RWA, or through the various blog stops, is my favorite part of this new phase in my writing career.

Technology has made the bond between author and reader so much more immediate and intimate. Over the last year, readers have become friends and frequent correspondents. They love to tell me what they liked, what they didn’t like, what made them laugh, what made them cry. Nothing is more gratifying from my end than to hear that I made them feel something, even if that something was anger.

So to all my readers out there, thank you from the bottom of my heart. You have made this last year so incredibly rewarding. I'm working hard to make sure there will be more to come!

A few more fun photos from RWA:

Me with Nora Roberts. Her books made me want to be a romance writer, and it was a huge thrill to meet her in person. Did you see the photo I posted a few days ago of Nora with my daughter after the Ritas? Thrilling!



I was signing books at our Sourcebooks signing on Saturday and glanced over to see this HUGE line waiting for ME. Another pinch-me moment! Thank you to Emily, my able daughter/assistant and birthday girl, for taking this photo!



With Emily at the RITAs:




The Sourcebooks gang going to dinner:

Book Signing Party

Last Thursday, I held a book signing party in Newport, RI, for my friends and family, all of whom have been so incredibly supportive of my writing career. In fact, Love at First Flight is dedicated to all of them. Without their overwhelming enthusiasm and encouragement, I never would've made it to book seven--Line of Scrimmage. I was delighted when more than 100 people showed up and my Barnes & Noble rep friend was thrilled to sell 85 books. Here are some photos from the big night! I'll post some more from tonight's B&N local author event in the next few days.









With a bunch of girlfriends, including (far right) and (third from right), my daughter's fourth and third grade teachers.



With my dad, who like last time, got the first signed book out of the box:



And with Jake, Emily and Dan at the after party hosted by our friends Ilana and Warren where I realized my 10-year-old son was playing pool at 12:45 a.m. and said, "Maybe we should go home!" A good time had by all!

Taking the Blogosphere By Storm Today

Launch Week Madness! Come see me at:

The Wet Noodle Posse where I'm talking about that One Magic Moment

The Book Addict on Pop Syndicate where I'm all about Rules Schmools:

And Novel Thoughts where I'm talking about Friendship Turning to Love

I'm giving away copies of both books, so come leave a comment to be entered into the drawings!

And Now for Some Good News...

The folks at the From the Heart Chapter sent me this lovely image to commemorate Line of Scrimmage taking 3rd place in the Lories Best Published Contest Single Title Category. Yay for Line of Scrimmage! My little book that could... Did!

Random Musings

Let's see... What's going on? Well...

1. I've been working on some revisions that are going really well. I love the way my agent's suggestions have breathed new life into my first and most favorite book. Yay, Kevan! I'm really looking forward to seeing what she thinks of this new version.

2. The reading frenzy from vacation continues. Last night I devoured the Blaze book "Hard Wired" by Jennifer Labrecque. I loved it and highly recommend it.

3. My daughter is finishing up her middle school years by playing Frenchie in "Grease," so I'm living with her Brooklyn accent and pink wig. My son begins baseball season this week with his first game rained out as usual. I think that's the fifth straight year he's been rained out on opening day. Poor guy!

4. My 17-year-old Wonder Dog Consuela has suddenly stopped eating. How do you spell D-E-N-I-A-L? It's unbearable to see her getting so skinny. Planning to call the vet today, but I worry they will say this is end-of-life stuff, and I sooooo don't want to hear that.

5. I'm speaking at career day at the middle school in early May. Last year I split the talk about 50-50 between the day job and the book writing. The kids were fascinated by the book writing, so I guess I will focus a little more time on that this year. I also have actual books I can show them this time around, so that will make it more fun for all of us. I'm scandalized to hear that many of Emily's friends have read Line of Scrimmage. I guess that makes me the Judy Blume of the new generation--at least locally. Oy! Emily hasn't read it, and that is JUST fine with me! I know it's only a matter of time, however...

6. Finally, can we talk about American Idol? OMG, I sooooo love Adam Lambert. He's amazing. Every time he sings I get goose bumps. He HAS to win! I can't imagine him not winning. Adam, Danny, Kris and Allison are in a league all by themselves. They are so insanely talented it's not even funny. The other three (Lil, Matt and Anoop) are vulnerable. I used to really love Lil, but the judges are right about her lack of originality. All you have to do is watch Adam, Kris or Allison to see what they mean about what's missing in Lil. I hope America gets it right and that Simon doesn't regret using the judge's save on Matt, who I don't think was worth the save. What do you think?

More Good News!

Line of Scrimmage took third place in the Single Title category of the Lories Best Published Contest! I haven't entered very many contests so this counts as my first-ever placement! Sponsored by one of my chapters, From the Heart, I heard the Lories were very popular this year, so I'm super excited to have placed.

Danielle, my publicist at Sourcebooks, tells me we can now refer to me as an "award-winning author" in promotional materials. How cool is that?

Happy Dancing!

We're Having A Party!

The Casablanca Authors (those of us published with Sourcebooks Casablanca) are helping out with the last day of Barbara Vey's Beyond Her Book blog 2nd Anniversary Party over at Publisher's Weekly. We're giving away copies of our books to commenters, so come by and join the fun.

On our Casablanca Authors Blog today, we've brought some of the food to Barbara's party. Check out our fabulous recipes, including Line of Scrimmage Buffalo Chicken Dip, which is great for tailgating parties!

Alrighty, enough partying... Back to reading revisions....

02871

Since I finished my first book almost five years ago, I've had an ongoing and ever-changing relationship with my local post office. At first, I'd make regular trips to mail query letters, partials and full manuscripts. I was lucky to receive numerous requests for full MSs before I sold Line of Scrimmage in 2007. Back when I was first querying, most agents still wanted full manuscripts printed out and mailed. I spent a small fortune in postage during those years, and I got so I hated trudging over there to mail off another envelope full of dreams.

Since I signed with my first and then my second agent and sold Line of Scrimmage, I haven't had as much cause to stand in line at the post office. However, I did send copies of Line of Scrimmage to a couple "Best of 2008" contests. As I was waiting in line earlier today, thinking about all the many trips I'd made to that place, I had to smile as I realized another milestone in my journey as an author. I've gone from mailing manuscripts held together by rubber bands and binder clips to mailing off MY BOOK. That is very cool, and it's another thing to celebrate along the way, even if LOS doesn't make a ripple in any of the contests. Today I also mailed a copy of my most recently finished MS to my friend Mary in Florida, who told me she can't possibly wait until she gets home in April to read it. She was one of my first and most rabid fans, and I'm delighted that she hasn't lost her enthusiasm for getting "hot-off-the-presses" books.

March came in like a lion here yesterday, dumping 8" of snow in our neck of the woods. My kids were out of school AGAIN, meaning they are now in school until June 25! That's the latest I can ever recall them being in school. While I don't enjoy being outside in it, I really do love the way the snow has the power to bring life to a halt the way almost nothing else can in this go-go-go world. Everything is cancelled when it snows, especially when it's part of what we like to call a Nor'easter in these parts.

Finally, I'm pleased to report that I have finished the galley proofs of Love at First Flight! And yes, I did find a mistake late in the book on the second read through—just like I did with Line of Scrimmage. So while it was EXTREMELY painful to read the same book twice in a week, especially when you know exactly what's going to happen, it was time very well spent. Now I'm working on the revisions to another book, have two contests waiting to be judged, and two critiques I promised a couple of my new writer friends. I'm also starting to get my ducks in a row for the publicity blitz that will surround Love at First Flight's launch in July. At least this time, I have an idea of what to expect, which is why I'm thinking about it now! What's keeping you busy these days?

A "Pinch Me" Week

FedEx started the ball rolling on Monday by delivering two packages, both from my publisher. One included Advance Review Copies (ARCs) of Love at First Flight. The other contained the galley proofs, which show the final layout of the book. This is the last time the author sees the book before it's in print. GULP. As for receiving the ARCs, I have to say it was so exciting to see LaFF as a real book for the first time (even if it's not the final, final version), just as much as it was with Line of Scrimmage. Check out my recent post on the Casablanca Authors site about how I broke some of the romance "rules" with Love at First Flight. I'm really excited (and nervous) to see what reviewers will think of this one. We did so well with LOS that I can only hope lightning will strike twice. Fingers crossed!

I'm about halfway through a first read of the galleys. I plan to read them twice because on the second run through the Line of Scrimmage galleys, I found a typo in the closing pages. As a professional copy editor, I live in mortal fear of missing the big mistake. In fact, I was SO afraid to even look at Line of Scrimmage after it was published for fear of what I might see. I told my friends, "If you see anything wrong with it, do NOT tell me!" (I never did hear of anything wrong with it. Not sure if that's because there was nothing wrong or people were afraid to tell me. Either way, ignorance is bliss.) But then my wise chapter mate Barbara Keiler (w/a Judith Arnold) told me to READ THAT BOOK. So I did and I only found some missing close quotes and a good morning that should've been a good afternoon. Not bad to say the book was 86,000 words. This one is 94,000. Again, I say GULP. The good news is that I love this book sooooooo much that reading the galleys is a treat. Let's hope it's still a treat the second time around!

This week I've also had lovely chats with my editor and agent. Then our very energetic Sourcebooks publicist Danielle weighed in with the amazing list of review sites she's targeted with ARCs of LaFF, hoping to generate some good buzz about the book. Editor, agent, publicist, galley proofs, ARCs... I feel like a real working author. Like I said, PINCH ME!

Recently, I've made a couple of new writing buddies by volunteering to critique manuscripts for unpublished folks. I have to say it's so great to work with people who are totally open to suggestions and who welcome honest feedback. I've also worked with a few who are less receptive, and that makes me sad for them knowing what's ahead. They may get lucky and sell their books but an editor is going to require significant changes and that can be difficult to handle. Two of my new friends are just hungry to learn everything they can, and I'm so excited to see how they will make out when they submit their work to agents. In addition, I've been judging a few contests, another thing I enjoy doing. It's a good thing I'm between books right now because by the time the day job is done and the kids are happy, there's not much time left in the day and it seems like I have a lot to do. I'm also supposed to be revising another MS, which I plan to get to right after I finish the galleys.

And, since I recently weaned myself off caffeine, I'm ready for bed most nights at eight o'clock lately! Horrors! That's my prime writing and TV watching time! Hopefully, I'll adjust soon to life without caffeine and be less exhausted than I've been for the last week or two. At least the heart palpitations that necessitated this unsavory development have let up, so I guess it was worth it. Zzzzzzzzz

Line of Scrimmage Nominated for CAPA

For Best Contemporary Romance of 2008 by The Romance Studio!

Book 2 Has a New Name!

Yipppppeeeee! We have renamed book 2, and I love it! Ready?

LOVE AT FIRST FLIGHT

Okay, it's so perfect that I've spend most of the day wondering how I didn't think of it. Whereas some of my books simply name themselves, I struggled with one name after another for this one. The editorial team at Sourcebooks came up with this new title, and they did a great job.

The story, in a nutshell, is this: A Baltimore prosecutor set to begin the biggest trial of his career and a hair stylist with a dysfunctional family meet in the airport on their way to visit their significant others in Florida. After they each endure a disastrous weekend, they meet up again on the flight home, striking up an unlikely friendship that leads to love.

I posted Chapter 1 on my website tonight. Another thing I love about this title is how it plays into a change my editor suggested to the opening. In the first rendition, the book opened from my heroine Juliana's point of view when she is running for a flight that ends up delayed. In the final version, we see the opening from Michael's point of view and get to experience his visceral reaction to meeting Juliana. Later, he realizes he fell in love the instant he first saw her. Immersed as he is in a long-time relationship with his fiancee, Michael, a serious, grounded prosecutor, is freaked out by his reaction to Juliana. I love the new opening. I love it even better with this new title.

Renaming books is part of being published. I got lucky with Line of Scrimmage, which was published under the name I gave it. I like LOVE AT FIRST FLIGHT much better than the name I gave book 2. However, the process does feel a little like giving birth and then handing over the child to someone else to name. It's grueling for authors. But what I've learned over this last year is that there's a whole team involved with making my book fly (here come the flight puns). They want the same thing I do: to see this book do as well as it possibly can. The name they gave it today definitely helps our cause.

I'll post the new cover when I get it.

Year in Review

As 2008 comes to a close, I'm watching snow and wind derail my plans for tonight. Boo hoo!

This has been a difficult year for our country. The publishing business, in no risk of receiving one of those lovely federal bailouts, has suffered just like many other industries. I've said before that the only thing we as writers can do in this economy is to keep writing and hope for better days ahead. I still firmly believe that the stories we're working on right now will contribute to the industry's resurgence in 2009 and 2010. Three weeks from now we'll inaugurate a new president, and I can't wait to be dazzled by him. But before we step into the New Year, here are a few of my writing highlights from 2008:

--Seeing a book cover with MY name on it for the first time.
--Getting PAID for my work. Twice. WOW!
--Gaining admission to RWA's Published Author Network, a major feather in a romance writer's cap.
--Returning from vacation this summer to find a box full of MY books on my front porch.
--Sharing the moment I first held Line of Scrimmage as a real live book with my husband and kids.
--Getting one excited e-mail after another from friends and family, letting me know their pre-ordered copies of Line of Scrimmage had shipped from Amazon.com.
--Receiving many wonderful reviews for Line of Scrimmage, including this one from Booklist, "With its humor and endearing characters, Force’s charming novel will appeal to a broad spectrum of readers, reaching far beyond sports fans." (To read all the lovely reviews, click on the "reviews" link below this post.)
--Signing with agent Kevan Lyon, who has been TERRIFIC to work with and lots of fun to hang out with, too.
--Walking into Barnes & Noble and knowing MY book was there after years of wishing just ONE of the thousands of books in the store could be mine. (Ryan and Susannah's wedding song, "You're in my Heart" by Rod Stewart, coming on the radio as the kids and I were pulling into the B&N parking lot gave me chills and made me feel like my late mother was with me, sharing in the joy.)

Here I am visiting Line of Scrimmage at my local Barnes & Noble!



We're in a very good neighborhood next to Lori Foster, one of my favorite authors and a new e-mail buddy this year.



--Holding a launch party for Line of Scrimmage, where I was able to recognize and thank the friends who'd held me up on the long road to publication.



--Befriending Elena, the author liaison at my local B&N, who referred to me as her "most successful local author" in the four years she's been with the store. She says we're going to lunch when the 100th copy of LOS sells in her store. At last check, we were at 88. She held a fabulous book signing for me in September, made me feel like a star on more than one occasion, and became a valued new friend and advocate.
--Receiving real, live fan mail! One of my favorite comments about Line of Scrimmage came in August from J. Kaye Oldner on her blog: "It was a book that made me laugh as well as cry. The three-dimensional characters were so vivid. I’d have no trouble plucking each one out of a crowd. LINE OF SCRIMMAGE is Marie Force’s first novel. Her next is scheduled to be out in the spring of 2009 and it’s titled SAME TIME SUNDAY. You can bet I’ll be in line to get my copy, because hands down, this is the best romance I’ve read this year."
--Attending the National Romance Writers of America annual conference for the first time in my favorite city of San Francisco where I met so many of my online friends, rode in a limo to the publisher's dinner, and met my editor, publisher, agent and publicist in person.

Here is the Sourcebooks Casablanca gang at the publisher's dinner in San Francisco:


Back row (l-r) Michele Ann Young, Linda Wisdom, Dominique Raccah, Gail, Beth, Sharon Lathan, and our lovely publicist Danielle Jackson. Front row (l-r) Deb Werksman, Robin Kaye, Marie Force, Malena Lott, Judi Fennell and "Aunty Cindy" Loucinda McGary.

--Selling my second book, formerly known as Same Time Sunday, during the RWA conference. (New title pending, hopefully in early January.) I'm very excited about this book and can't wait to hear what readers think of it. I take a few risks in this one by showing my hero and heroine with other people before they get together. (And when I say with other people, I mean WITH other people... Tee hee, yes, there's sex in chapter 2!)
--Being featured twice in local newspapers.
--Attending the New Jersey Romance Writer's Conference where I participated in a multi-author book signing for the first time and connected with readers, one of whom gave ME a gift to thank me for writing a book she loved so much. That was pretty cool!
--Signing books at Annie's Book Stop in Sharon, MA. Thank you Merry Cutler, a great friend of romance writers! Hope we can do it again when the second book comes out.



--Making an astounding array of new friends, both writers and readers, who have been so supportive and invested in my writing career. My fellow Sourcebooks Casablanca authors have been such a joy to me, keeping me sane, focused and enormously entertained. You ladies are my favorite writing friends, bar none. Our Casablanca Authors blog has been a lot of fun this year, and I look forward to the start of another terrific year together.
--Participating in a group signing in Baltimore's Inner Harbor B&N with my good friends Robin Kaye and Kendra Leigh Castle, with whom I also share agent.



--Starting this blog and committing to it as an almost-daily endeavor beginning in November. Nearly 3,000 readers have stopped by, which is a major accomplishment in and of itself.

Yes, there have been downs to go with the ups, but as I look over the list above, I realize that the highs have certainly outpaced the lows. I will look back at 2008, my debut year, as a year to be remembered and savored as I go forward, hopefully for years to come, with new books, new adventures, and more new friends. Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who loved Ryan and Susannah, who wrote glowing reviews, who took the time to send me fan mail to tell me they loved the book, and who made my year by getting what I was trying to convey about a marriage in crisis. I know this may sound hokey, but I also want to thank Ryan Sanderson for being one hell of a fun character. He is the heart and soul of Line of Scrimmage, and readers have responded with passionate love for him. Publishers Weekly said of him, "Ryan . . . is a good guy desperate to fix past mistakes, a terrific change of pace from the typical reluctant hero."

By far, the best part of this debut year has been sharing the excitement with the people I love and seeing my Dad enjoying every minute of it after years of urging me to get serious about my writing. At every party, cookout, gathering, and event I get grilled on how it all works: how you write a book, how you sell a book, how it feels to be published, etc. As my fellow writers will attest, we love to talk about what is for most of us a lonely, solitary pursuit. My secret life came busting out of the closet this year. I'm a writer, and now everyone knows it.

Wishing you good health, good friends, and good books in 2009!

Christmas is Saved!

Up until recently, our house has been referred to as "Little House on the Prairie" by our smart-aleck friends. No play station, no Wii, no gadgets except for a karaoke machine and a couple of high-end computers. Big whoop for the kids. Last New Year's Day, Jake and I struck a deal: If he read every night (or close to it) until his October birthday, we'd get him a play station for his birthday. Well, he held up his end of the deal and so did we. He used his birthday money to take it even further: he bought a PSP, a hand-held game system. I joke that we haven't seen him since October. People tell me the obsession will wear off in time. Not seeing any sign of that thus far...

Since we've crossed the threshold into the 21st century, I decided to go all the way and get them a Wii from my dad this Christmas. Except, being totally ignorant in the way of most things electronic that aren't computers, I waited until yesterday (Dec. 22) to look for one. Last week, I was at a Game Stop in Massachusetts and saw the store was loaded with Wii boxes, except Jake was with me and I hadn't yet discussed this big idea with Cliff Claven, who's even more of a dinosaur on this subject than I am—and that's saying something. I held off on buying it last week because I figured they were fat with them and there'd be plenty left when I went out to make the buy. I've since learned that the boxes in Game Stop are only for show. They don't necessarily mean they have them in stock! I also figured the Wii has been out for a couple of years and people are probably over it by now. I said as much to the guy at Best Buy yesterday. He just smirked and said, "Yeah, not so much. Not over it."

I came home and called my dad. "We're screwed," I said, bummed mostly because I was loving the idea of him being the Christmas morning hero. My kids adore him, and the gift would be huge coming from him. He and I agreed that they were old enough at 13 and 10 to cope with an IOU especially since they're getting plenty of other loot.

Then, today, a miracle! My cousin Trisha calls about something totally unrelated and mentions that she bought a Wii today! WHERE? I cry. She tells me where she bought hers and then mentions that she's at Game Stop—the same one I visited yesterday only to be told there wasn't one in the entire state of Rhode Island. Guess what? They had ONE. BUY IT! I screamed. Laughing, she asked me to stop screaming in her ear.

The THING is in my house. She's been paid. Christmas is saved.

Note to self: next year plan ahead. Second note to self: hope the kids don't read the blog. They don't read the blog. Do they?

Merry Christmas one and all. Thanks for all your support this year, for your kind words about Line of Scrimmage, and your excitement about the still unnamed second book. I'll be back after Christmas.

Two New Reviews for Line of Scrimmage

More than three months after it launched, Line of Scrimmage continues to snag some great reviews! YAY! Here are the two latests ones:

Romance Junkies
LINE OF SCRIMMAGE is about getting a fresh start, a new beginning. Ryan and Susannah are clearly made for each other. I loved their interactions and conversations. Ms. Marie Force did an excellent job of putting the reader in her character’s shoes. The story is filled to the brim with characters you fall in love with, plot twists you’d never guess and plenty of action in between. LINE OF SCRIMMAGE is a fast-paced read that will warm you on the inside and make you believe everyone deserves a second chance for their happy ending. Read the full review!

A Romance Review
"Marie Force does many things right: Ryan is sexy, has enough ego in him to be a football player but is also a straight shooter and is unafraid to share his feelings with his wife. Susannah is an intelligent woman who fears giving Ryan her heart again. Her conflicts were natural, but so was her genuine love for him and her decision to support his career for so long. I really liked this story!

Line of Scrimmage is a romantic and sexy football romance. Athletes often make for some of my favorite heroes and Ryan definitely lives up to some of my past favorite characters. This story has heart and depth! Read the full review!

Thanks to the reviewers for their kind words!

Signing Books in Baltimore

Yesterday, I signed Line of Scrimmage in Baltimore with my friends Robin Kaye (Romeo Romeo) and Kendra Lee Castle (Call of the Highland Moon and Dark Highland Fire). It was great to see Robin again and to meet Kendra for the first time. Besides sharing a publisher, we are all represented by the lovely Kevan Lyon. After talking our faces off over lunch, we spent the afternoon at the Barnes & Noble at the Power Plant in Baltimore's Inner Harbor.

It was fun to be back in Baltimore, where we spent a lot of time when we lived in Maryland (from 95-98). I remember my now 13-year-old daughter fighting to get free of her stroller as we walked through the stores in the Inner Harbor. My next book, the one formerly known as Same Time Sunday (new name pending, stay tuned), is set in Baltimore. I love the Inner Harbor, Fells Point, Little Italy. It's a great city, and Robin, our new BFF at the B&N there was super to us. Thank you Robin!

Here are a few photos:

Marie, Robin and Kendra



Robin's husband Stephen, the original Domestic God, who kept us in coffee during the signing.



With my friend and co-worker April Pardoe, who "loaned" me her former home in Baltimore to use as my hero's home in the book formerly known as Same Time Sunday. I'll post some photos of that fabulous place when the book comes out!